Final Portfolio Fall 2009

I began this class struggling to find my subject matter. I played with the idea of fashion and the female form. Although these subjects interest me, I found that I subconsciously wanted to get another message out. The last half of this semester accumulated in me concentrating on two larger works based on smaller drawings I had created relating to painful memories that I had been avoiding. These works are both about 4'x4' pastel or charcoal drawings on panel. The background of the art works is acrylic painted with a pallet knife. I worked to throw my emotions into the art works and so kept a looser style. When creating these works I was influenced by Egon Schiele (painting style and forms), Pablo Picasso (his bulls), and Edvard Munch (style, emotions, subject matter). I feel that this semester I have gained a great deal of knowledge about working on a larger scale. I have found a definite direction for my art work.

In Progress

For the last few weeks I have been working over Wasted Youth. I put a good four or five layers of black over it with a pallet knife. I have also started another four foot art work that will go along with Wasted Youth. This work is dealing with my brother's epilepsy. Both pieces are in progress. I would love to hear feed back.

Wasted Youth

Wasted Youth is a drawing/painting I am working on. The art work is about the second major time my brother almost died. My brother was attacked by an old friend. The guy attacked my brother with my brother's guitar. Although I was not there, my memory has fabricated the image of what that moment of violence looked like. I always see a red guitar swinging down on my brother from behind in a large arc like an axe chopping wood.
The image above is my first take on this art piece. I will be going over this with paint and starting over. I became frustrated while working on the piece as the pastels I had were just not soft enough to leave marks on top of the paint. On the other hand when I attempted to erase and then wash the pastel off, it added a pretty shade of pink to my artwork.
With this piece I was trying to portray the violence and the swing of the guitar as a weapon.

Memory Drawings

These are a few of the drawings mentioned in my previous post. These were quick drawings that deal with my memories and emotions. The top two images and bottom one have to do with my grief after my uncle's death. The middle two are memories of my brother. One is of him being attacked with his guitar. The other is a memory of being home alone when he had a seizure.

Change in Direction

After the harsh critique of my fashion drawings I stopped drawing. For about a week or so I avoided it. Then one Saturday night I picked up a piece of vine charcoal and started drawing. It was much akin to Surrealist Automatism. I started drawing without planning what I would draw and let myself go. What came out of that piece of charcoal were memories that I try hard to avoid and never to talk about. In 30 quick uncontrolled drawings I let out my emotions. I have realized that in doing my fantasy art and fashion drawings, I am attempting to escape what I actually should be drawing.
I will now be working with the concept of memories and emotion. Art is not just a communication device, but a source of healing. I am working through my own memories and grief with this artwork. I will post a few of these quick drawings in my next post.

Tim Burton in the MOMA

Tim Burton famous for movies like The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Corpse Bride will be showing a body of work in the Modern Art Museum in NY. His large body of work is being labeled Pop Surrealist. Apparently his artwork shows a much lighter side then his movies. It is interesting to see the cross over from movies to fine art. Check it out:

http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/313

Ink Victorian Fashion

During a critique on my charcoal drawings it was suggested that I work with ink. I had a lot of fun for a week playing with the material. Unfortunately, I did not do my explorations on water color paper and so had my paper wrinkled after the fact.
This work went into critique and did not fair well. It was stated that the artwork did not matter, nor did it have a strong enough concept. Although I do not fully agree with these statements, I found that it did get me thinking. My artwork here is an enjoyment of form and shape as well as an escape into a time gone by. I have since taken a very different turn in my artwork. This will be explained in a later post.